Two sea otters were recently spotted off the Oregon coast, an area where they have not been seen since the early 1900s, Oregon Live reported.
The otters were seen first by volunteers with the Elakha Alliance, an Oregon nonprofit working to restore and conserve sea otter populations. Marine biologist Chanel Hason, who is the director of outreach and community relations for the Elakha Alliance, later confirmed it.
"We are thrilled about this rare and wonderful sighting," Jane Bacchieri, executive director of the Elakha Alliance, said in a news release. "It highlights the resilience of sea otters and the potential for their return to the Oregon coast. This event also underscores the importance of ongoing conservation efforts for our nearshore marine ecosystems."
Though sea otters are native to the region, they were virtually wiped out by the commercial fur trade that began in the 1700s, the Elakha Alliance explained on its website. By the early 1900s, sea otters had been effectively removed from much of the Pacific Rim, including Oregon.
The Elakha Alliance has already conducted a feasibility study to determine how successful reintroduction efforts might be. The fact that two otters have apparently decided to reintroduce themselves bodes well for their chances.
Sea otters could bring "profound ecological benefits to Oregon's coastal waters," the Elakha Alliance said, by performing functions such as helping kelp forests to grow by regulating sea urchin populations.
Other reintroductions of threatened and endangered species around the world seem to be having good results.
The reintroduction of beavers to the English countryside has transformed entire ecosystems for the better.
In South Africa, lion cubs were recently born in the wild for the first time in 150 years in one area, after the species was reintroduced.
Giant tortoises in Madagascar are being reintroduced 600 years after they disappeared, with experts expecting them to have a profound positive impact on the ecosystem.
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